1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a stacker and a card processing apparatus that is equipped with the stacker, particularly, relates to a stacker for containing a plurality of cards ejected from a card processing apparatus, which conducts secondary processing such as printing, laminating, magnetic processing and electrical processing with respect to each card, by stacking the plurality of cards in order, and the card processing apparatus equipped with the stacker.
2. Description of the Related Art
The Japanese publication of unexamined patent application No. 2005-280954 disclosed the conventional card stocker (hereinafter referred to as stacker). The stacker disclosed in the publication No. 2005-280954 stores a plurality of cards as goods to be stowed by stacking the cards.
More specifically, the stacker is installed nearby a card carrying out slot provided on a sidewall of a card printing apparatus as one example of a card processing apparatus, and stores a plurality of cards ejected from the card carrying out slot by stacking the cards as it is even though a front surface of a card is upside down when ejected from the card carrying out slot of the card printing apparatus.
As mentioned-above, the stacker disclosed in the publication No. 2005-28095 stacks a plurality of cards as it is. However, the stacker fails to be equipped with a component part for supporting a card ejected from the card carrying out slot. Therefore, a card freely falls in a space of the stacker immediately after the card is ejected from the card carrying out slot. As a result, falling posture of the card is hardly stabilized, so that a surface of a card is reversed in some cases.
Accordingly, it possibly occurs that cards stacked in the stacker are mixed with some cards of which surfaces are reversed with respect to others.
As mentioned-above, the stacker disclosed in the publication No. 2005-280954 exhibits a stacking problem of cards. Consequently, a stacker shown in FIG. 17 has been proposed so as to improve such a problem.
FIG. 17 is a perspective view of a stacker 105 and a card processing apparatus 101 according to the prior art. In FIG. 17, directions; upward (Up), downward (Down), leftward (Left), rightward (Right), frontward (Front) and backward (Back) are designated as a matter of practical convenience.
As shown in FIG. 17, a card carrying out slot 101a is provided on slightly higher position of a left sidewall 101s of the card processing apparatus 101. The stacker 105 is installed on the left side of the card processing apparatus 101 so as to be coincident with the card carrying out slot 101a, and stores a card Cd ejected from the card carrying out slot 101a by stacking the card Cd.
More specifically, the stacker 105 is provided with a slanted surface section 105a and a containing section 105b. The slanted surface section 105a is provided with a slanted surface, which is raised on the right end side toward the card carrying out slot 101a and gradually declines in accordance with the direction toward the left. The containing section 105b is formed in approximately a box shape and disposed outside of the slanted surface section 105a in a card carrying out direction of the card Cd or in the leftward direction.
By the above-mentioned structure of the stacker 105, the card Cd ejected from the card carrying out slot 101a slides down the slanted surface section 105a and falls in the containing section 105b in a box shape. The card Cd is held in the direction of gravitational force through the slanted surface section 105a while falling in the containing section 105b. Consequently, the card Cd falls in the containing section 105a in stable posture.
Accordingly, the card Cd is never reversed it surface while falling in the containing section 105b and all cards Cd are stacked while maintaining their surfaces in the same direction.
The stacker 105, however, is provided with the slanted surface section 105a and the containing section 105b in series along the card carrying out direction.
As shown in FIG. 17, a relatively large amount W5 of bulge exists in the left side of the card processing apparatus 101. In addition thereto, an extra space is necessary for taking out stacked cards from the containing section 105b on the left side of the stacker 105.
Accordingly, an installation space for the card processing apparatus 101 equipped with the stacker 105 results in extremely large area.
In order to improve efficiency of installation space of a card processing apparatus equipped with a stacker, it has been required for a card processing apparatus equipped with a stacker that the amount W5 of bulge should be decreased and the stacker should be compact in dimensions.